Lost time
by SomuchSarcasm
Summary: Having lost 5 years of his life Kaiba tries to come to terms with everything that has changed in his absence. *Yaoi*
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: Okay, in this thing Seto and Jou are the same age and Mokuba's about 4 years younger. And apparently same sex marriages are legal. And please, this is not a expository text so I will have some facts about how it really happens wrong._

_Disclaimer: It's not mine._

_PS: I am supposed to write a piece for Nagareboshi-Lover, but since I'm useless and haven't finished it yet I'm dedicating this chapter to her. Peace._

It started with fuzzy sounds and a feeling of coming up to the surface from deep, deep water. Seto's eyes fluttered and the sounds began to discern themselves. The most obvious sounds was the steady beep-beep of what he was sure was a heart monitor. The second most obvious was of movement around him and as these sounds grew closer Seto felt fear close a fist around his heart. There was someone in his room and he was helpless. Seto willed his body to move, he willed himself to get out from under the shape that was now hovering over him, but he was a prisoner in his own body. Suddenly a touch seared his skin and without meaning to Seto screamed hoarsely. His eyes snapped open and like a muscle spasm his hands grabbed convulsively at the person above him.

It was a nurse.

Just a nurse who looked like she'd just seen someone rise from the dead. "Mr Kaiba!" She gasped, pausing in the middle of changing a drip connected to his arm. "What?" Seto gasped out trying to raise an arm to his parched throat. He couldn't do it, he couldn't raise his arm! Apparently noticing his shocked look the nurse's hands fluttered, "I'll go call a doctor shall I? Just a minute, sir!" She pattered out of the room leaving the panicked CEO to desperately try and move his useless body.

It felt like an eternity before someone came back to his room. Seto's eyes swung to the entrance and he tried to swallow again. "Ah, Nurse, did you not get our patient something to drink? He seems very thirsty." Seto's whole body relaxed as the woman scampered out of the room. And suddenly there was a face in his field of vision. "Mr Kaiba, welcome back. I know you must be terribly confused, but just bear with me for a moment, I need to have a look." The, presumed, doctor worked his way systematically down his noncompliant body. Seto lay impatiently, waiting for the idiotic nurse to come back and just get him some relief. When the girl finally returned with a bowl of ice shards she let them slide, one at a time, down Seto's throat until, finally, he could swallow and speak again.

"What's wrong with me? Why am I in here? Where's my brother?"

Seto's voice rose in volume as he pushed the questions out one by one until panic took it away again and the doctor pressed a hand against his chest gently. "Calm down, Mr. Kaiba. I will explain everything in a moment and we have called your brother. He will be here in half an hour." Seto forced himself to breathe evenly with the man above him before the Doctor continued to check his vital signs.

Finally the doctor seemed satisfied and he took a seat next to Seto's bed. "Mr Kaiba," the man started calmly, "What is the last thing you remember?" The man sounded too casual even for Seto's sluggish mind and he glared at the man at his bedside. "What do you mean the last thing I remember? I remember this morning when Mokuba and I were driving to school. We dropped him off and carried on…" Seto blinked, but quickly made the connection. "Then I suppose the incident that landed me here took place. Now that you know, perhaps you can tell me what happened." The doctor opened his mouth to reply when the door slammed open and Seto heard a voice cry out. "Nii-sama!" Seto turned his head with an effort and took in the welcome sight of his little brother. Only to stare in shock at the teenager in front of him. "Mokuba?" He croaked. The boy in front of him had sounded like his little brother using a fake voice, but looking at him now Seto knew that the deeper voice indeed belonged to the tall, short haired teenager in front of him. "Mokuba?" He whispered again, softer now. Seto jerked his head back towards the doctor, once again in panic. "Nii-sama?" Mokuba's sudden big boy voice was quiet. Seto heard him step closer and felt his useless hand being taken. He hissed a little in discomfort, but couldn't bring himself to look at the big man acting like his brother.

Once again Seto's sluggish mind made the unwanted connection and he closed his eyes. "How long?" The room stayed quiet and it made him even angrier that both people in it weren't answering him. "How long!" He finally roared as loudly as he could, forcing his useless body to work in ways it hadn't in some time. "Five years." It came from Mokuba, was spoken in his teenage voice and Seto twisted his head in that direction when he heard it pain filled lilt. The boy had tears in his eyes and the discomfort of his hands around Seto's had increased as the boy squeezed it even tighter. Suddenly he was back to himself, back to the older brother who didn't want his younger one to cry. "It's okay, Mokie, it's okay. See, I'm here and I'm awake." He watched the suddenly 19 year old sink into the other chair beside his bed and felt the younger boy tremble against his thigh, almost sure that Mokuba was crying. Having processed what had happened at least somewhat Seto turned back to his doctor. "I presume I can't move because of muscle atrophy. When does my therapy start?" The doctor smiled, pleasantly surprised at how the presence of the man's younger brother had given him the strength to take charge. "Well, we have a few tests that must be done before we can assign a therapist, but it should happen in the next two days." Seto tilted his head a little and checked on his brother who had nuzzled his head into Seto's side and was watching him with tear-wet cheeks. "Well then, you may carry on, after I've spoken to my brother." The doctor stood and nodded to the two men. "I'll leave you to it, Mr. Kaiba, Mokuba." He walked over to the door and checked on the brothers one last time before sliding it closed.

For long moment they only watched each other and then Mokuba had his arms around Seto's neck and was wailing again. Seto chuckled softly and pressed his cheek against his brother's hair, "It this how teenagers act nowadays?" He heard Mokuba hiccup a reply and laughed again. "I do not speak mumble, Brat." Finally Mokuba pulled away and clutched at Seto's hand. "Welcome back nii-sama, I really missed you." Mokuba's attempted smile came out a little watery. Then they were back to quietly staring at each other.

There were so many things Seto wanted to ask, but he had no idea where to start. "The company!" Seto attempted to jerk upright, but managed nothing more than to lift his torso slightly. Mokuba frowned in worry and he pushed Seto gently back onto the bed. "Don't strain, please Nii-sama. The company's fine, we've done our best to care for it until you could take over again." Seto's face pulled into his own frown at Mokuba's use of 'we', but before he could ask the teenager slapped a palm to his forehead. "Oh shit, I gotta go call Jou! He's in America busy surveying what changes should be made to the infrastructure of our branch over before the new financial year starts, but I'm sure he won't mind being woken up for this." He kept blabbering as he jumped from his seat, effectively keeping Seto from asking any questions and all but ran from the room already flipping open his cell phone. At the door he looked back and sent his brother a blinding smile. "I'll see you in a few moments, Nii-sama!"

QQ

The silence was deafening.

Seto had woken up to see an older, more mature Katsuya Jounouchi sitting next to his bed, calmly reading what looked like a report. He'd smiled at Seto when the other man had woken up, "G'afternoon Seto, They said you'd wake up around this time for your therapy, so I thought I'd wait for ya." Seto had been so confused that he'd kept his mouth shut. This was obviously not the same brash teenager with whom he'd frequently traded insults, but a well dressed man much more in control of himself than Seto felt at the moment.

Since then he'd thought of a million ways to ask the question floating foremost in his mind, but none of them seemed to fit the Jounouchi sitting next to his bed. Finally he settled for being blunt, that was after all how everyone knew him. "What are you doing here?" Jou seemed surprised. He raised an eyebrow, giving his face a quizzical cast. "Didn't Mokie tell ya?" The expression on Seto's face conveyed that, no, he had in fact not told him and Jou shook his head. "That brat," he muttered, sure that Mokuba had been afraid of upsetting his brother and that's why he had remained silent about the topic.

Great, because obviously the news would be much better received by Seto if the 'Mutt' broke it. "Look, it's well, it happened like this. You were in that accident and Mokie was all alone and he was struggling, Seto, I mean really, really struggling with everything. He'd just lost his brother and parent all in one go and was making bad choices. An' those old bastards on the company's board had all sorts of ideas about declaring the little guy incompetent and appointing a successor of their own. An' let's face it, I may not have been you or Yug, but I knew a coupla things about Duel Monsters and discs and everything, so really it was the only thing I could think of to do and Roland agreed. So we kind of set me up as Mokuba's guardian. Just ta, ya know, look after things until you woke up." Jou was gesturing wildly and Seto could hear the desperation in his voice, but he couldn't seem to wrap his mind around one tiny thing. "Mokuba's guardian? How did you _arrange_ that?" Jou rubbed the back of his head with a hand looking sheepish. "Well, we, uh, kinda produced some documents…"

"Documents?"

"Well, that, ya know…listed me as your legal spouse."

Seto jerked up from his bed and roared, "YOU WHAT?" He stared at the blonde, wide eyed, but Jou didn't react in any way other than to push him gently down onto his pillows. "Seto, it was the only way, there was no way the court was gonna allow me, at barely 18, to just take him in and he needed help, he was falling apart. That's the only reason we did it, I swear." Seto closed his eyes and willed himself to breathe evenly. This wasn't so bad, everything was going to be fine. He'd get out of this damn bed, get his company back and have the marriage annulled. That was all there was to it, right now there were other things to worry about. "So you're running my company? How? You have no business experience or knowledge." Jou smiled, his face showing his obvious relief that Seto hadn't tried to bash his head in with a bedpan. "Well, maybe not five years ago, but it's different now. I did actually put some effort in, ya know? It's not like I woulda offered Mokie my help without making sure I could help."

Seto nodded reluctantly. What the Mu…Jounouchi said made sense. It just curdled that he hadn't been the one to raise his brother. That he had left Mokuba alone, just as he'd been left alone. He curled his hands into the sheets.

"I want to go home."

If Jou was surprised about the turn in conversation he didn't show it. He arranged the papers on his lap without looking and flashed Seto a smile. "Sure thing. That can be arranged. I'll speak to your doctor and we'll take ya home as soon as possible." Seto didn't remove his gaze from the spot on the far wall where he'd fixed it. "Thank you." Jou nodded once even though the brunette wasn't looking and got up from his seat at the sound of the door opening. "Well, I'm sure Mokie will drop by after his classes finish for the day. Good luck with yer therapy." He greeted Seto's therapist briefly and was gone.


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: It's short, but think of it as just a little filler chap. I'm not great at multi-chaptered stories because I tend to think a story through and then lose interest, but I'll finish this, promise! And thanks to everyone who reviewed, much appreciated!_

_Disclaimer: It's not mine. _

_This day just did not seem to want to get better._ Seto grumbled internally as he let the duffel bag containing the only things he wanted to take from this place drop to the floor. It had started pleasantly enough, but another gruelling session with his small, but decidedly demonic, therapist had fixed that nicely. The woman had worked him into exhaustion and admonished his impatience with a reiteration of her previously delivered speech concerning the time it took to rebuild muscle tone. It wasn't that Seto's rational mind didn't recognise logic when it was encountered, because it did. It was just that everything _hurt_, even after two weeks of intensive therapy and that, along with this tiny, beige room, was slowly driving him to the brink of insanity. It was only the thought of Mokuba that made him push forward and smile resolutely every day the boy asked how it was going. Seto felt discomfited enough in this new world, even in his own body, that he did not wish to have his only current anchor to treat him with pity. Besides, he truly wished for nothing but Mokuba's happiness and if that meant he had to endure a little pain and frustration silently, it sure as hell wouldn't be the first time. The therapist had left, after ensconcing him once again into his wheelchair, their next appointment fixed, and all that was left was to wait for Mokuba to come pick him up and finally, _finally _take him home.

And thus, expecting his brother and finding the Blonde made Seto's day. He hid a grimace at Jou's old, cheerful smile, another thing seemingly tempered by age and raised an eyebrow in greeting. "I was expecting Mokuba." Jou's smile didn't waver as he nodded at the bag on the ground and almost simultaneously stooped to scoop it up. "I know, this yer bag? Mokie wanted ta be here, but he had a sudden meeting with one of his professors so he asked me to fill in for him. Ya don't got a problem with that do ya, Seto?" Seto refrained from scowling and nodded curtly. He was once again caught off guard by Jounouchi so suddenly taking charge and as was his new habit he opted to remain quiet rather than to see what would happen if he acted as he would have in the past.

As if his world had not been consisting of too many curves and too few straight lines already Seto had been forced to start dealing with one Katsuya Jounouchi who acted unlike Katsuya Jounouchi was supposed to act. Apart from being extremely familiar with him, which already grated at Seto's naked nerve endings, the other man's personality seemed to have developed to such an extent that Seto was being forced to revise all his opinions of the blonde.

He passed a hand over his eyes as he listened for the umpteenth time as Jou greeted yet another hospital staff member, like an old friend nonetheless, and slowed their progress towards the outside world even more. Something in the gesture must have given him away because Jou commented on it softly as they crossed the hospital's threshold. "Ya can only drink so many cups of bad coffee with someone before some sort of rapport is built, don'cha think?" Seto wasn't sure what to make of that statement so he didn't reply. Perhaps it wasn't needed because the Blonde too remained silent on the rest of their short walk to the car.

The atmosphere was anything but companionable, but at least the backseat of the limousine was big and there was enough space between brunette and blonde so as not to feel claustrophobic. Seto had shifted his sluggish body away from Jou the moment after the Blonde had helped him into the car with a gentle apology for any rough handling. "We have a new place in the city." The attempt at making the situation they were in less awkward had finally led to Jou talking about why they were being driven in completely the opposite direction of where Seto had expected them to go. "Well, I suppose it ain't that new anymore, we moved in a few months after your accident. After a few times of having Mokuba wake up in your room and sobbing his eyes out I thought it best that we moved. Besides, we're closer to everything now, school and the office included." He shifted to catch Seto's eyes with his own. "We can move back, of course, if ya want. I made sure to maintain the old place in case you'd feel more at home there." Seto had never given much thought to the terms 'house' and 'home'; for him they were one and the same and both only described a structure for him to sleep and work in. Therefore he was apathetic about Jou's suggestion and lifted a shoulder in a careless shrug. "I don't care."

Jou looked towards the thin brunette sharing his seat. "Ya are surprisingly easy to accommodate, Seto." His voice portrayed nothing but idle curiosity and Seto couldn't work up the will to decided whether he should feel offended by the statement or not. So instead he kept his own voice idle and responded "One place to sleep is as good as any." Jou made a sound that might have been a snort or might have been amusement, but he kept his peace once again and they spent the rest of the right in silence.

QQ

The apartment was spacious and stylish and even Seto could comprehend how different the atmosphere was from the huge mansion they had previously occupied. He wondered briefly who had picked out the leather and cream colour scheme but then abandoned the thought as irrelevant and instead focused on Mokuba who had arrived minutes after they had and was intent on giving him the complete tour. And otherwise just showering him with all the lavish attention of an eager puppy. "I'm really sorry that I wasn't here, Nii-sama, but my professor wanted to speak to me about starting a study group for our economics class. Apparently there are quite a few people who're failing and the professor thinks I seem like the sort to put up with them." Mokie rubbed his head sheepishly and grinned at Seto, "But seriously, what am I going on about. I'll show you your room, we got a few things ready for you, but Jou and I agreed that we should wait to get you fitted for new suits and the like till you've gained some weight again. Is that okay?" Mokuba's prattling cut off into the question abruptly, his expression portraying anxiety.

Seto repressed what felt like the millionth sigh that day. He knew his younger brother only meant well, but whenever he spoke of Jou and him Seto got this distinct tightening in his chest that felt way too much like jealousy. Hearing Mokuba and Jou make decisions together, especially when they concerned him made it even worse and Seto had to stomp down heavily on ridiculous, unwanted feelings. "It's fine, thank you, Mokuba." Seto feared that saying more would lead to him saying all kinds of things so he kept quiet and silently motioned Mokuba to show him the room. The nineteen year old grinned and swooped down unexpectedly to kiss Seto's cheek. "I'm really happy that you're back home, Nii-sama." He whispered, appearing suddenly shy for a few moments before he was off again. "Anyway, I wanted to celebrate you coming home, but Jou said you'd probably be kinda tired so we're eating in, but the moment you're better we're going out, okay?" Seto nodded again. He'd forgotten about Mokuba's ability of keeping a conversation going all on his own. Truthfully, he was tired and at least it meant that he could let his attention wander.

"We're eating in?"

His mind had caught up with what the black haired teenager had said at last. Mokuba grinned and parked Seto's chair next to the couch in the living area before throwing himself it. "Yup, you might have noticed that our personal cook disappeared the moment you got here. I think he wants to prove to you that's he's been taking good care of me. He's after all been my mommy for the past few years." Mokuba's grinned widened when there was an audible clang from the kitchen. "I heard that!" Jou yelled causing Mokuba to burst out in laughter. "Mommy?" Seto murmured quietly when his brother had stopped his giggling. Mokuba looked up at him from his sprawled position on the couch next to Seto's chair. "Well, if he's your husband then he's my mommy by definition, isn't he?"

Seto's expression must have given his feelings about their 'marriage' away, because Mokuba stopped smiling and his expression became a little anxious again. "It was just a joke, Nii-sama. I didn't mean to offend you." Seto looked upon his brother and realised fully, perhaps for the first time, how much of Mokuba's life he'd missed out on and how big of an impact Jounouchi seemed to have had on it. Even as he patted his brother's shoulder and assured him that everything was fine, it occurred to him that divorcing the blonde might not be as uncomplicated as he had convinced himself it would be.

Supper was a quiet thing, Seto was surprised by Jou's skill in the kitchen as even the simple meal that he had quickly thrown together was delicious. He ate as much as he could stomach aware that Mokuba was watching him like a hawk between his sporadic bouts of conversation with Jou. During the rest of the meal he watched the two men in front of him as they interacted comfortably and tried not to think about feeling like he was intruding on the two's family time. Afterwards Seto excused himself as quickly as he could declining Mokuba's offered help with a quirk of his lips and the excuse of needing the practise. In truth all he needed was time alone to process the myriad of feelings his homecoming had engendered.

Jou watched Seto's retreating figure with a small frown. "Hey Mokie, do ya feel…" He trailed off unsure how to continue asking a guy who after five years just got his brother back if he thought something was off with said brother's behaviour. "Hmmmm?" Mokie enquired mouth stuffed with a last bit of potato salad even as he started clearing away plates away. Jou shook his head and got up to help, "Nah, it's nothing." Mokuba frowned and swallowed quickly. He followed the blonde into the kitchen quickly and handed him the plates one by one to be loaded into the dishwasher. "Jooouuuu, you know how annoying I find that!" Mokuba whined as he pushed the last plate into the rack himself. Jou didn't even crack a smile at the black haired boy's tone as he usually did. His mind was still worrying at Seto's behaviour. He yelped when Mokuba kicked his shin lightly and glared at the younger boy.

"What the hell!"

"What's wrong, Jou?"

"Nothing in particular, I just…Look don't ya think yer brother's acting a little strange?"

Mokuba blinked at the question and rolled his eyes. "Geez, Jou, of course he's acting a little strange he was asleep for 5 years for crying out loud!" He even smiled a little as he shook his head at the older man. "Nii-sama probably just needs some time to adjust, he'll be back to normal soon, you'll see." Mokuba skipped out of the kitchen to fetch the last of the dishes leaving Jou crouched by the dishwasher, still frowning. He understood why Mokuba didn't want to acknowledge that something was wrong, he really did. But, the thing was, the old Seto would have been hissing and spitting by now and Jou didn't exactly welcome the lack of such behaviour. Jou sighed and scrubbed a hand through his hair in frustration. Nothing he could do about anything now, except keep an eye on the troublesome older man as long as possible.


	3. Chapter 3

_A/N: It's angsty! So angsty! This is probably the second or third last chapter. I want to end quickly before my imagination starts wandering and I become bored. I'm not making a habit of this (or perhaps I am, who knows), but I'd still like to dedicate this chapter to Dancing Elf I really do appreciate the reviews! :3_

_Disclaimer: It ain't mine._

There were worse ways to wake up.

Seto, as the uncrowned king of bad wake ups, knew that. He also couldn't deny the fact that the bitter aroma of coffee had always had a way of soothing him. Yet, being greeted by his blonde _spouse _with his sleeves rolled up in a way that signified that breakfast had been made and smiling in greeting as he deposited the cup he was holding on the bedside table _was just so damn domesticated. _It made Seto cringe.

But not enough to deny the coffee, as the blonde bastard had probably calculated.

"Morning Seto, I figured that since it's been almost 2 months now you'd like to start doing some reading," He gently placed a sheaf of papers next to the coffee cup and straightened to show Seto that damn smile again. "I gotta be at the office in a few, but I left your breakfast in the oven so please make sure that ya eat it after your therapy, kay?" Jou checked his watched absentmindedly, "Speaking of which, that's in about an hour, so you got just enough time to drink yer coffee and get ready." As he was speaking he stepped over to the blinds and started opening them with brisk movements. A gesture which Seto would have appreciated if not for the fact that Jou hadn't _asked_ him and had simply assumed that that was what he wanted.

Seto had to grit his teeth to keep from growling that a consultation would have been appreciated. It seemed like such a juvenile thing to argue about, as everything seemed to be recently and he found himself burying the frustration to focus his attention on what the other man was saying. "Oh, and don't worry if Mokuba stumbles out of his room some time during the morning, his classes start at eleven only." Jou cast a quick grin at Seto before starting to roll down his sleeves. This was a signal that Seto had come to recognise as one that meant he was leaving and he nodded mutely. Here was another person who could hold a conversation all by himself. Jou smiled at Seto for a moment longer and suddenly it seemed that the Blonde wanted to say something. An uncharacteristically serious expression flitted across his face before Jou pursed his lips, checked his cuffs and nodded at Seto. "Enjoy yer day." Was finally his only comment as he swiftly left.

Seto was doing his warming down stretches when Mokuba finally stumbled out of his room, fully clothed, but seemingly having dressed in the dark as his shirt was buttoned up wrong and his jeans half unzipped. "Morning Nii-sama," He mumbled after an ear splitting yawn as he slothed toward the kitchen and Seto allowed himself a small smile. Thankfully some things never changed and Mokuba's morning habits was one of them.

With therapy just done and the last of his morning exercises completed Seto felt the tug of his own stomach so he grabbed his cane and levered himself to his feet to go join his semi comatose brother in the kitchen. From the clacking it could be assumed that the black haired boy was warming up breakfast, but knowing Mokuba he could just have been trying to make coffee. And indeed the teenager was slowly, but surely making a mess of the whole counter. Coming to a stop next to his brother Seto placed one hand on the marble counter top and leaned over to relieve Mokuba of the coffee pot. "Before you hurt yourself, Squirt." Seto said with a smirk and reached for the cups hanging beside the kettle. The younger boy made an annoyed sound, but relinquished the coffee preparations to his brother and instead focused on heating up their meal.

"How'd therapy go?" Mokuba asked after they'd seated themselves at the table. He didn't wait for an answer from his already chewing brother before he started eating too. It was the usual bacon and eggs special, except that Mokuba loved any food Jou made and had no reason to complain about it. Even if he dared complain Jou would probably tie his ears together under his chin and tell him to make his own. Not that the prospect scared Mokuba, he could make his own meals. He could, really.

Seto chewed slowly as he watched expressions flit across Mokuba's face before rolling his eyes. The younger boy was probably thinking of something ridiculous again. He swallowed, took a sip of coffee and wiped his mouth before replying. "Nothing special. The little devilwoman says I'm making good progress." Mokuba smiled at his brother description of his therapist. He was sure she wasn't that bad and was eternally thankful that she was actually helping Seto. He couldn't imagine just anyone having that ability.

Being that the two were men and had the typical male ability to simply inhale foodstuffs it wasn't long before the plates were empty and Seto was drinking the last of his coffee. Mokuba began gathering plates as soon as he saw the older man was done and waved him away with a grin when Seto offered to help. The black haired teenager seemed sufficiently awake by now to avoid death by crockery and he looked fine with packing the few things they had used into the dishwasher by himself so Seto left him to it. "Oh yeah," Mokuba called when he was almost out of the room. "What do you want to eat today? Since it's Yugi night for Jou I thought I'd pick us up some take-aways on my way back from class." Seto paused and looked back at his brother.

"Yugi night?"

"Yeah," Mokuba replied, drying his hands on a dish towel and following his brother out of the kitchen. "Jou implemented it right after he moved in with me and started taking an interest in Kaiba Corp. They ended up never seeing each other so Jou made a specific night for him and Yuug to hang out. It's usually one night per week, although I think he has been putting them off on account of you waking up and then of Yugi going to some sort of seminar thing with his gramps." He sprawled himself out on the couch in what Seto had come to understand was a customary thing and patted the seat next to him as if to invite Seto to sit as well. The brunette did as he was bid, but not before absentmindedly arching an eyebrow at the commanding gesture.

So the chibi was still in Domino. Seto frowned thoughtfully. He had honestly not given any thought to any of the Blonde's high school friends since waking up and Jou himself had never brought it up either. Now that he was thinking of it though, he wondered what had happened to all of them. Mokuba seemed able to read his expressions well because he started talking without any prompting from the older man. "Honda and Yugi are the only two people that Jou still sees regularly. Yugi took over the game shop from his grandpa and is saving to go to school and Honda works at an auto-shop downtown. I really don't know about the others though." He paused for a moment, thinking and then smiled, "Of course Anzu and Yugi got together a few years ago, but she's studying dancing in America at the moment." He chuckled out loud this time, "Yugi was like a kicked puppy for months afterward. I heard Jou grumbling about it more than once." He was going to continue speaking, but happened to cast a quick look at the clock and yelped when he saw the time.

"Damn, I gotta run!"

True to his word he was off like a shot, whirling through his room to brush his teeth and gather his books. He leaned over Seto's back to give him an one armed hug, "So Chinese is okay? I'll rent a movie or something and we can just relax and pig out." He grinned cheekily at the look on the older man's face when he mentioned 'pigging out' and pecked Seto's cheek affectionately. "Love you, Nii-sama. See you later!" Then he was out the front door and Seto could hear him rattling down the stairs. With a last shake of his head at his brother's behaviour Seto put the thoughts of Jou's friends out of his mind and reached for the last of Kaiba Corp's annual reports that Jou had brought him. The sooner he got a full idea of what was going on the sooner he could get back to the office and be somewhat useful again.

QQ

"I brought a few since there's lotsa stuff you haven't seen yet and I couldn't decide what we should watch first." Mokuba sounded excited as he spread the see-through movie cases out in front of them on the table and Seto smiled ironically. "Oh yes, since it is my favourite past time, I'm glad you went through that much trouble." The teenager made a sound that Seto interpreted as 'yes, I heard and I agree, but I missed the sarcasm' and continued flicking through the pile, occasionally pausing longer at a particular disc before moving on. Seto looked on, wondering if the teenager was indexing them and if he meant for the two of them to go to bed that night.

Seto was sunk low into the pliant of the couch and had just finished his second helping of the take out.

It was quite comfortable.

Mokuba had finally decided what they were going to watch first on the huge, wall mounted flat screen and had popped the disc in the player and prepared the take out in one fluid, almost admirable, movement. Then he'd curled up on the couch next to his brother and, with an eager expression, pressed play.

Seto had long ago grown tired of what they were watching, but was content to alternate between watching his brother's enthusiastic reactions to a film he'd doubtlessly seen many times before and staring into space lazily. He was in such a daze that he hadn't realized that the film had ended until Mokuba was leaning into his field of vision looking faintly worried. "Nii-sama? Were you bored?" Seto blinked a few times to bring himself back to the present and smiled briefly. "It's fine Mokuba, I quite enjoyed it." His little brother's eyebrows threatened to disappear into his hairline as Mokuba's face took on a sceptic appearance. "Do you even remember the movie's name?" At Seto's caught look he laughed ruefully and ran a hand through his hair. "It's one of Jou and my favourites, so I admit that I kinda wanted you to like it as well."

"You two do a lot together."

The statement was out of Seto's mouth before he could stop himself. It had been an idle thought, something that he'd meant to keep in the privacy of his head. But somehow it had slipped out and Seto was shocked at how scathing and bitter he sounded. Mokuba sat back and frowned at Seto. "Well, Nii-sama we've had a lot of time on our hands and Jou's main objective has always been to look after me." Seto was immediately angry. Somewhere in the back of his mind it tickled that Mokuba hadn't meant it like it had come out, but anger needed an outlet and Seto's fury had finally found his. "What the hell does that mean?" He growled and levered himself into an upright position. For moments long it seemed that the teenager would back down, but then his frown deepened into a scowl and he crossed his arms. "We spent five years together Seto. Jou gave up his whole future for us. Hell, he became _hitched_ to you just to look after me!" Seto grinded his teeth, "I never asked him to do any of it!" Mokuba jumped to his feet, "So you'd rather have had me in some kind of orphanage?" He shouted, body tensed and face threatening to crumple, "You weren't here! You have no idea what it was like!" Seto got to his own feet and glared right back at the black haired teen. He knew he should stop and apologise, but at that moment it didn't seem like an option and the insults kept rolling from his tongue. After a while he wasn't even sure what they were roaring at each any more.

"You're right, because of course I wanted to be comatose and _helpless_ and have _everything_ taken from me. I apologise that it inconvenienced you and the Mutt! Next time I'll consult you _first_." Seto's voice had dropped to a venomous hiss and he got some perverse satisfaction of watching his brother flinch and take a step back. "I don't know what's wrong with you," Mokuba was chewing at his lower lip to keep from crying, "I don't know why you're acting like this." Seto stared at him for moments before cursing furiously and stalking past Mokuba into the bedroom and slamming the door behind him.

Seto dropped onto his bed and stared at his hands trying to cool his head. _I'm acting like bloody teenager. I can't believe I slammed my bedroom door like some brat. _Seto leaned his face into his palms and cursed again, softly. Seto didn't often think deeply on what he was _feeling_. But now, now that he was confronted with all this jealously and anger and worst of all _helplessness_, now he had no idea what to do with it all. There was no work for him to throw himself into and Mokuba was all grown up and not in need of a guardian (at least not someone like him) anymore. Seto sighed in defeat. All he really wished for was not to have to dwell on it all. Unbidden a specific incident when the Mutt had still been acting like he should rose from the murky depths of high school memories.

"_Nah," The blonde had said loudly, deliberately not looking at the brunette sitting at_ _his desk a few metres away. "Kaiba ain't got feelings. He's a robot didn't ya know. That silver case he carries with him ain't a laptop, it's 'is external power source." The blonde had finally looked over and chuckled in self satisfaction._

As much as it had only been a cruel little jab Seto remembered that the incident hadn't ended there. He remembered feeling angrier than ever at the Mutt who dared attack him without provocation. He remembered getting up and leaning over the Mutt's desk to remind him viciously of a few facts. At the time he'd ignored the momentary flash of pain crossing Jounouchi's face seconds before the customary sneer was in place and instead revelled in the sliver of shared pain. 

Seto sighed again. He was lost and he could finally acknowledge it. After screaming at his brother like a madman he could probably finally admit he needed help.

_Fuck_.

Seto reached out an arm and flipped the light switch not even bothering to undress before he lay back on the bed. It was just too much trouble.

QQ

Jou tiptoed through the quiet apartment early the next morning. His evening with Yugi had gotten a little late and he'd accepted his friend's offer to sleep over. Now all he had to do was take his shower and start breakfast then go wake up the Kaiba brothers. Jou grinned briefly, wondering what they had done before he'd started waking them up. Even Seto was a heavier sleeper than Jou had imagined him to be. It was quite endearing actually and Jou had started to enjoy those few moments before he woke the other man up, where he could just watch the brunette sleeping peacefully with the knowledge that he'd definitely wake up.

Entering the living room Jou was perplexed at seeing the younger Kaiba curled into a corner of the couch with his body curled defensively in on itself. He wondered briefly if this was the result of another of Mokuba's movie nights, but as he moved closer he didn't spot the other Kaiba, which was strange but not terribly so and Jou decided to leave the boy in peace at least until he had finished with his shower.

After a brisk shower and minutes spent deciding what to wear to work Jou stepped back out into the living area to find the now awake boy still curled up on the couch. He frowned in concern and reached out to touch Mokuba's shoulder. Now he was definitely worried, if Mokie was awake by now then that meant that the night hadn't ended as late as he's previously suspected and that something was obviously wrong. The black haired teen looked up quickly as if he hadn't noticed the blonde until now and attempted a little smile. Jou frowned at the obvious tear tracks down the younger boy's face and gripped his chin gently.

"What's up, Kiddo?"

Mokuba shook his head in the confines of Jou grip and his gaze dipped to his lap again. "N-nothing," he mumbled in a small voice that had Jou's frown deepening. He knelt at Mokuba's side and managed to catch his gaze again. "Did something happening between you and Seto?" Jou asked as gently as he could. He'd been fearing an explosion for some time now, but had hoped that Seto who target him instead of the younger boy.

No such luck it seemed.

Mokuba replied with a shrug and dislodged Jou's grip on his arm to run his hands through his hair. "We had a fight," He finally said and his voice sounded a little stronger. "I don't even really know what we fought about, but probably the only reason no one called the cops was because this is a penthouse." He blinked at Jou, once, twice then three times and attempted another smile. "I've never heard Seto shout like that."

Jou narrowed his eyes in sympathy and dragged the boy closer for a hug. "Don't worry about it. I'll talk to Seto, kay?" Mokuba didn't reply but after a short while he pulled away from Jou and rubbed a hand over his face. "I've got early classes. I should probably get ready for them." After his face scrub Mokuba attempted another smile and this time seemed to succeed partly. "Thanks Jou." He mumbled quietly over his shoulder as he made his way to the bathroom. Jou watched the teen walk away before getting up from his pose on the floor. After a moment's hesitation he headed in the direction of the kicthen. He might as well make coffee before speaking to the elder Kaiba. Perhaps it would make the conversation flow easier.

QQ

Seto was also awake. He was sitting on his bed surrounded by the reading material Jou had provided him with. Jou watched him from the open door before stepping inside the room. It looked like the brunette hadn't slept at all, if his pale complexion was any indication, but Jou had no illusions about whether the sleepless night would have bettered Seto's mood. He held the coffee in front of himself like a shield and watched the other warily. "Morning Seto." Seto raised his eyes from the papers in his hands, but didn't accept the coffee forcing Jou to put it on the bedside table.

"Do you remember that you once said I was a robot with no feelings?"

Jou frowned, it wasn't as if he had not expected to be attacked, he was just dumbfounded by the topic. Seto didn't wait for an answer before he ploughed on. "Do you remember what I said to you before leaving class?"

Seto watched Jou's frown deepen as memory supplied him with the relevant information. The years had supplied Jou with a with a more open countenance than he had had in high school and Seto saw that flicker of old pain flash across his face much more clearly. "Ya said," Jou paused and started again, "Ya said ya could understand why my father would want ta beat me." The look on Seto's face bordered on triumphant. "And _Katsuya_, how does your maturity deal with that?" Jou stared at him for moments longer before he abruptly turned and left the room. Seto sat back and bared his teeth, but not in satisfaction. Not even he was that depraved.

QQ

"What happened?" Mokuba asked, towel drying his hair as he stepped into the living room and saw Jou rummaging through the beautiful side board's drawers. Mokuba knew he was searching for the cigarettes he kept there for those days when he felt the whole world had just given him the finger. It figured that five minutes with Seto could be the equivalent to that, Mokuba thought half bitterly, half glumly. Jou finally seemed to find what he was looking for and he jerked upright with the packet and lighter clenched in one hand. With the other he scooped up his briefcase and suit jacket. When he finally looked over at Mokuba his face was set. "I was disillusioned." He said quietly and spun on his heel to head for the door.

_A/N: Sorry for any spelling mistakes that slipped past me!_


	4. Chapter 4

_A/N: I ain't got nothing to say except, I do not own Yu-gi-oh. Please enjoy and excuse any spelling mistakes :3_

The therapist girl's name was Karen. She was a petite red head who hosted, in a 60kg body, the attitude of a 130kg wrestler with a name like Coffin Maker. That particular morning she'd come in through the door, shed her coat, put down her equipment and narrowed her eyes at the brunette.

"What did you do, Kaiba?"

Kaiba had given her a look of his own from his place in front of the now closed door and replied with a very intelligent grunt. For which she was getting her revenge by putting Seto through a sequence of stretches guaranteed to brutalise him under the pretence of warming up. When she finally let go of his right leg and moved to the left Seto sighed and caved under her steady pressure.

The damn woman just didn't know when to quit.

"I seem to have lost my place in the world." He stated abruptly closing his eyes to not have to see the look she was giving him. There was silence for a few seconds. It caused Seto to relax slightly and open his eyes to glance at the Red head before darting his eyes away. "Your place in the world?" She prodded gently as she had another go at his leg. "Mokuba, Jou. They're both perfectly fine without me, in fact they are probably better for each other than I could ever be." He knew it was a pathetic thing to say, but she _had _asked. Still, he was surprised when she suddenly let go of his leg and looked up at her in confusion. Karen was staring at him in outrage. "How many kinds of stupid are you?" She snapped and crossed her arms over her chest the sequence they had had been working through forgotten. Seto blinked at her. "I am certainly not stupid." He growled and crossed his own arms. Apparently the redhead disagreed because she started speaking extremely slowly. "Those…guys…are…your…family. You do not need to have a purpose in a family. Besides, let's get honest here, would the guy who diligently visited his comatose husband for five freaking years think that the guy is useless?" Her exaggerated tone started speeding up as she carried on until she had to stop to draw in a gulp of air. "Geez Kaiba, that's all?"

Kaiba took a breath and sat up slowly. He had forgotten about the marriage lie. The damn thing made everything more difficult. Nevertheless he attempted to convey unfamiliar feelings to the woman. "My brother and Jounouchi has become people that I do not recognise and here I am. Useless and lost. While everyone changed time stood still for me," he said and looked up into her blue eyes. "I'm jealous of my _husband _and my brother and I feel…" Seto dropped his gaze, "I feel like a child surrounded by people who expect him to be an adult. And frankly, I am _tired _of that bullshit_. _It wasn't all that remarkable when I was 12 and it certainly is not so now." Seto ran a frustrated hand through his hair and felt more than just a little embarrassed at having admitted to these things. His embarrassment wasn't assuaged one bit when he looked up and found Karen's decidedly unsympathetic gaze on him.

"Here's shortened version: Suck it up." The woman smiled savagely at the way Seto's eyes widened in shock and then narrowed in anger. Before he could speak she continued in a softer tone. "Look Seto, I'm sure that your family is not expecting you to suddenly be an adult. Whatever we so-called _adults_ can claim as our own, whether it's feelings or possessions, is hard won and comes with time. Geez, don't think it's gonna be easier for you just cause you're some genius CEO. Besides, judging by the people you left behind, you managed quite well the first time." She smiled softly and took his leg between her hands again. "Let's start at the beginning, okay?" The brunette nodded absentmindedly and gave himself over to her hands. Karen smiled in satisfaction even though the man wasn't paying attention. At least he seemed to be turning what she'd said over in his mind.

Seto ran his fingers over the grooves in the stone underneath them as he stared out over the darkening city from the apartment's balcony. He settled himself more comfortably against the waist high wall. From a spectator's view he might only have been admiring the vista of glittering structures surrounding him, but in reality all his thoughts were turned inward and the eyes that were staring at the scenery were unfocused. Throughout the day he had found himself with quite a lot of time to think on what Karen had said and he had come to the conclusion (as difficult as it was to admit) that he had been sulking rather badly and taking it out on the Mutt and Mokuba.

By carefully examining his behaviour up until now he'd also realised that the sulking was probably a product of having so much time on his hands. From the time when he taken over from Gozaburo Seto had always ensured that there was enough to occupy him so as to not have to think about what he was missing out on, but careful introspection had told him that he'd only been putting off the inevitable. After all, he'd read the text books on developmental psychology, admittedly to monitor Mokuba's development, but he should have factored in that just because he chose to neglect his own emotional state did not mean he would be exempt from emotions. Seto scrunched his face into a scowl and swore once, under his breath. As irritating as it was he would have to apologise to both his brother and the Mutt. Then he could set about fixing his own problems without their hurt expressions haunting him. It would be an added bonus if his brother did not cry again and, his annoying newly introspective mind supplied, if he didn't have to see that lost look cross the Dog's face.

As if cued by his thinking the front door opened and the squeak of two pairs of shoes could be heard. Seto was briefly amused as he wondered if they had come home together by accident or if safety in numbers had been the plan of action. He listened quietly for conversation, but couldn't make out more than soft murmurs. He could have gone inside, but he was comfortable where he was and honestly he needed to gather a little courage for the confrontation, he was after all not someone who simply barged into things. The brunette's expression became pensive as his thinking drifted away from planning the impending conversation to idly wonder how the other two would act when they saw him. Mokie would probably try to act as usual, since it was the tactic they had employed in earlier years. He had no real idea what to expect from the Blonde though. Somehow Seto found himself hoping that Jou did not react as he would have in earlier years. Something new would be, in this case, refreshing.

Approaching footsteps broke through his thoughts and soon his younger brother's rather hesitant voice spoke up. "Nii-san, there you are. I was looking for you." Seto allowed himself another brief smile at being right before he turned to face his younger brother. Mokuba's expression was two parts cheerful and one part hopeful. "Good evening, Mokuba, you are home rather late." He answered calmly and watched the teenager's face glow red in a way that probably meant that he had been hiding with Jou at the office until now. Seto allowed his amusement to break through onto his face and his smile brought a shy one onto the dark haired boy's face as well, making it relax slightly. "Is supper almost ready?" He asked to fill the silence and Mokuba nodded as if just remembering. "Oh yeah, Jou and I brought it back with us. You can come have some if you want." Seto gripped his cane and pushed himself from the wall. He tilted his head at Mokuba when he had regained his footing and the teenager turned to lead the way back into the brightly lit apartment.

The blonde was sitting on the couch where Mokuba usually sprawled himself and was setting out the Chinese take-out boxes. Seto almost smiled again. Now if only they ate the leftovers for breakfast the next morning, he could actually believe that nothing had changed. The other man looked up briefly as Seto passed him to sit on the armchair on the other side of the couch and nodded warily when their eyes met.

"Kaib'."

"Mutt."

The room seemed to become all tensed up in a matter of seconds and Seto blinked at the way the other two were looking at him. He sighed inaudibly for the millionth time that day and folded his hands in his lap.

"I…apologise. It's just a habit."

He thought for a few moments and carried on. "I know I must do this, but listen well, because it will not happen again." Seto made sure he had both men's attention and took a deep breath. "I seemed to have been more difficult than usual to live with and thus I apologise for what I said to both of you last night and this morning." The ensuing silence was long and almost unbearable and it made Seto irritable. "Well, what the hell are you looking at me like that for? Did you not hear me?"

Mokuba was the first to move. His expression was still shocked, but it quickly changed to worry and he placed his hand on his brother's forehead as if to feel for temperature. The action caused Seto to scowl and leaned his head back. "I am not sick, you brat. Go eat your food." Mokuba stared at him for moments longer before looking back at the Blonde as if to seek reassurance.

The Mutt cleared his throat, "I think he's actually saying sorry Mokie." Jou said with a frown. Seto watched Mokuba trundle back towards the couch and flop down on it, still in a daze. Seto pursed his lips, he was unsure of whether his apology had been accepted, but let it pass when the still frowning Blonde handed him a container of food. "Thank you," he said and the returning nod made him think that it had at least repaired some of the damage.

QQ

To his credit the Mutt waited until Mokuba had finally gone to bed before turning to the brunette still sitting in the armchair. "Ya think it'll be that easy? Ya say sorry and now we're all peachy?" Seto put the papers he had been reading down and turned slightly to face the Blonde.

"Did _you_ think it was going to be that easy?"

Jounouchi frowned at him and crossed his arms, but he remained quiet. "You are in my home because of a decision you made. Do not expect me to just go along with it. Not once when we fought as teenagers did you back down from it. Do not think that I will treat you any different until I can accept that you are." Seto finally broke eye contact and reached for his glass of water on the table beside the chair. Jou remained silent until Seto had drunk his fill and put the glass down. "And you, you won't change? I'll just always hafta put up with this asshole in fronta me?" Seto didn't comment on the blonde's assumption that he would always be in their lives and instead opted for replying to his question with an unwilling shrug, "You may allow some room for growth I suppose. Slow growth." He warned with his eyes narrowed at the look of satisfaction on the blonde's face. "What about the other thing? Ya know, that forged document and all." Jou asked seemingly out of the blue and suddenly very interested in the condition of his nails judging from the way he was staring at his hands. Seto didn't move and his expression remained blank. "I have not given it any thought, but I believe it might be better to continue with the charade until I am fully recovered." Jou blinked up at him in surprise and Seto rolled his shoulders a bit as if to work out a kink. "It is convenient to have you stay here as you are currently the best person to speak to about my company." He paused for a moment as if he was working around a block, "And that Mokuba needs you has become increasingly apparent." Jou's shy, goofy smile made him look like his younger self again and the sweetness had Seto gagging, "Now don't get all ridiculous. You are merely useful, it's nothing to be happy about. And I'm calling you Mutt, because it rolls off my tongue so much better." Jou scowled at that and crossed his arms over his chest, "Che, whatever." He muttered rising to his feet and heading for his bathroom. "G'night ya Bastard." He sounded gruff, but Seto could almost see the smile on the Blonde's face wrapped as it was around his head. He allowed himself an eye roll aimed at the Blonde's retreating figure before sitting back and taking his documents in hand again. _Idiot._


	5. Chapter 5

_A/N: Hey guys, sorry for the hiatus! _

_I've just got a little thing to say. Never forget that we're all writing for fun and if I decided to write Seto living in a candy cotton castle and riding pink ponies you'd either read it (if that's your thing) or you'd leave, because in the end it's my damn story and I'll write the characters as I want them._

_Now: __**WARNING: **__AU; OOC (lots and lots in this chapter)_

_Lastly: __**DISCLAIMER: **__I do not own Yu-gi-oh._

_Peace*___

"Flip it over…twist it…then sling it this way…" Mokuba was worrying his bottom lip between his teeth between every mumbled utterance. His hands would twist this way first then that way a few times before he'd realise that he'd missed a step somewhere in the middle. At a moment like that his forehead would crease just a bit and he'd unravel the whole thing in frustration and start over. Of course throughout the whole campaign Seto watched in half amused and half exasperated silence as Mokuba attempted to knot his tie. "I am fully capable of knotting my own tie, you are aware?" He finally said and was rewarded with an absentminded shushing sound. With a slight roll of the eyes Seto resigned himself to stand in this, admittedly, spacious dressing room while his little brother figured out exactly how the knotting of the tie should go. After what felt like the fiftieth attempt Mokuba finally stepped back to admire his handiwork. His arms were crossed and his stance critical as he took in Seto's final appearance. A huge grin broke through his satisfied expression.

"Perfect, just like a boss!"

While Mokuba was celebrating his own genius Seto turned towards the full length mirror mounted on the wall and scrutinised the end product. Usually he did not care much for clothes, as long as it was appropriate and well made, but even he had to admit that he looked impressive in the charcoal suit and sapphire shirt that Mokuba had spent hours picking out. "It's your first day back, you need to look awesome." Had been his repetitive answer every time Seto mentioned his annoyance at spending so much time in this very distinguished establishment where tailors had the tendency to fawn excessively every time he stepped through the threshold. The contemplative silence between the brothers was broken when a older man came bustling into the room exclaiming with delight and immediately whipping out a tape measure to check Seto's measurements one last time. "You look simply splendid, Mr Kaiba! I am awfully delighted that we could help such a famous young man as yourself find his way back into the world." The old man kept nattering as he worked and his words elicited a snort that would have happened if Seto had not caught his brother's look pleading that he behave himself. So he stayed simply quiet and _did not_ utter that of course they were happy to help when it was lining their pockets so well. Instead he tuned in on Mokuba's conversation with the tailor. They seemed to be talking shop. "Well, of course, these are the measurements for now, but I do expect that Nii-sama will still fill out some in the coming months, so of course we'll be making another visit then so you may correct your records." Seto made a sound then, but it only served to turn the attention on him and the older man nodded sagely, "Ah, yes, I see what you mean of course and you are indeed welcome back at any time, young sir. You are a top priority in fact." The compliment had Mokuba smiling in thanks and Seto almost gagging. But rather than be annoyed at the tailor Seto was amazed by Mokuba's skill at handling toadies. It felt strange to have to constantly remind himself that Mokuba was not a little brat anymore no matter how many times Seto called him so. When they had finally finished their purchases and loaded them into the limo Seto felt a tug on his shirt and looked back from where he was leaning into the open door. Mokuba was grinning at him as if he had just had a marvellous idea and Seto held back a shudder at the thought.

"Well?"

"I thought we'd take a walk."

"A walk?"

"Yup, back to the apartment, so you can get a little more exercise. Just like the doctor ordered."

Mokuba's grin was all teeth and the tug of his hand on Seto's jacket didn't let up until the brunette had straightened from his pose. "Jeez, Brat, you are out to kill me. You and that red headed devil woman." Mokuba's smile stretched even wider and Seto was sure there were not _that_ many teeth in a normal human's mouth, but Mokuba's hand was still on his shoulder so Seto capitulated reluctantly. He allowed himself to be led away from the car onto the pavement and past more bustling exclusive boutiques.

"So, are you nervous?" Mokuba asked, trying to appear off hand, as they finally reached a quieter part of the city where shops gave way to greenery in between high rise apartment buildings. He watched his brother purse his lips, but the rest of his face remained impassive. "I believe the expression is 'like riding a bicycle'." Mokuba couldn't help but smile at the words, even though he felt more infuriated than anything else. They walked in silence for the next few minutes and dark headed teen took the time to study his brother's profile. Except for the lack of weight – still slightly worrisome to the other members of his family – Seto looked good for someone who had come out of a coma fewer than six months ago. It was probably due to the strict exercise regime he had set for himself, but it could just as easily be that Seto had achieved it through sheer willpower alone. Which was not such an impossible explanation since the person in question was his brother. Mokuba found himself smiling happily up at the brunette and he wiped the expression off before his brother could deign to look at him. And no doubt deliver some snarky remark about smiling so wide in broad daylight. So instead he asked another question to cover the embarrassing moment.

"So what about Jou?"

"Jou?"

"Yeah, you know, big blonde guy. Lives with us."

Seto gave him a slanted look that spoke volumes. "I know who he is, you brat." His ensuing silence on the topic annoyed Mokuba just a little and he gave Seto's jacket another tug. "You can talk to me." He said with a frown, trying not to sound petulant. He stopped when Seto did and met his brother's mildly surprised look squarely. The surprise slowly gave way to a rueful smile and Seto leaned over to ruffle his hair for a few moments – the full extent of his PDA capabilities. – "I apologise Mokuba, you are not a child." Seto took a breath and started walking again beckoning Mokuba to follow. "I have given it some thought, our situation that is." He admitted reluctantly. "The current arrangement is desirable. I do not have any inclination to terminate it." Mokuba ducked his head so his brother would not see the amusement on his face. He wondered if Seto was aware of the fact the his speech became more stilted when he was feeling emotional, but he could guess the answer was 'no'. It was a small thing, so the chance that anyone else had picked the habit up either was molecular, but Mokuba appreciated it as it allowed him some small insight into his brother's complicated mind.

As unaware of his little quirk Seto was, he was not so unaware of his brother's elation and he was quick to warn: "Do not jump to conclusions." Mokuba gave up trying to hide his expression and smiled widely. It was way too late for that! He stuck out his tongue and graced Seto with a pat on the shoulder, "Too late!" He declared excitedly and jogged ahead.

QQ

Seto attempted to stay still, but his brother's fussing was becoming ever so slightly annoying. He closed his eyes against the tick his left eye was quickly developing and tried to stand patiently while Mokuba fussed over that damn tie, _again_. Finally, just as he was about to explode, a pair of bigger hands replaced Mokuba's and in a matter of seconds Seto could feel a perfect knot lying against his throat. He opened his eyes to look into Jou's grinning face. "There ya go Seto, perfect." He said cheekily and took a step back to stand next to Mokuba. Suddenly the black haired boy yelped, "O wait, I got you something, Nii-san!" He darted into his room and was back seconds later holding a rectangular shaped cardboard box. "I remembered that yours was destroyed in the crash, but buying another silver one seemed awfully outdated." He handed the box to Seto, smiling shyly and Seto flipped open the lid to reveal the black leather briefcase. He didn't mention that he had already acquired one and instead simply decided to move his documents when his brother was not around to see. "Thank you, Mokuba." He said and reached out to ruffle the teen's hair. It was enough, Seto decided, just to see that expression on his face. Their moment ended with Jou, resplendent in his own black suit, discreetly clearing his throat. "It's time ta go, Seto." He said. Seto checked his watch and had Mokuba fussing over his lapels one last time before he disengaged gently. "I'll see you later, Brat." He watched Mokuba wrinkle his nose at him and flap a hand. "Yeah yeah, just get going," He mumbled, with what Seto could have sworn was a sniff. As they were riding the elevator to the ground floor, Jou standing slightly behind him at his right shoulder, the blonde said softly. "He's really proud of ya, Seto. That's the only reason for the sniffles." Seto didn't deign to reply, especially not to express gratitude.

QQ

Seto blinked at the scene in front of him. Of all the things he had expected when he got out of the car this horde of reporters had strangely not been one of them. Looking into the flashing lights and yelling newsmakers Seto knew that that had been a miscalculation.

"Mr. Kaiba! Mr Kaiba! How does it feel to be back?"

"– What are your plans for the future?"

" Are you unhappy with any of the changes that was made in the company?"

" Sir, how does it feel to be back knowing that the company has not been in your hands for the last five years?"

"What will you do now?"

Seto watched the crowd in front of him in impassive silence. He was not answering their questions because in all honesty he had not given them any thought.

What _was_ he going to do now?

These past months he'd worked to get his company back and he'd achieved it, to a certain degree, although he'd be the first to admit that it required work still. Yet, now, all that remained was deciding on what he was going to do with the rest of his life. Would he just take up his old spot at Mokuba's side until the boy left to go live his own life and then be the lifeblood of the company for the rest of his? Somehow it was a prospect that held no appeal whatsoever.

As Seto stared out over the mob in front of him he felt, for the first time since they had been taken in by Gozaburo, that there could be a choice. He was momentarily amazed by the thought, it was after all a novel idea and had so many possibilities. This first of which was of course to…He felt Jounouchi step up beside him, most likely to explain to the ravenous bloodsuckers around them why he was not speaking. It was laughably easy to slide an arm around his waist and yank the surprised blonde closer. Their lips connected perfectly and Seto's other hand shot upwards to cradle Jou's head closer. He moved his lips harshly against Jou's own and tangled his hand deeper into Jou;s hair as the other man responded. He could feel Jou's hands digging into his shoulders where he'd anchored himself and a powerful feeling raced through Seto's veins like liquid fire.

Finally satisfied Seto removed himself from Jounouchi's hold and righted the shocked blonde onto his feet. It was only then that he noticed that everything had gone deathly quiet. He swept his gaze over the crowd in front of him and felt nothing but amusement and exhilaration at their shocked expressions. When his eyes fell on the woman who had asked the question Seto smirked.

"Whatever the fuck I want."

When the clamouring started up again all at once Seto had already lost interest. He nodded to Roland and waited, completely impassive, as the security team made a path through the press of people. Then he dragged a still dumbfounded blonde through the cleared passage. At the glass door that signified the entrance to his empire he spun once and directed a finger at the nearest camera man. "Send me a copy of that picture. I'll frame it for my office." He smirked again at the tiny sound a protest coming from Jounouchi, showing that he was finally regaining his sense, before striding past an openly grinning Roland and into the building.

QQ

Throughout the long day that followed Seto was relentless in his questioning of Jou about all the practical aspects of the company that he had hitherto been unable to familiarise himself with. Of course, since it was his first day he was attempting to catch up as quickly as possible, but it had also served as an effective way to take Jou's mind off that morning's mayhem. Now, with working hours finally coming to an end, Jou was free to burst into Seto's office and demand an explanation. Of course, the whole bursting manoeuvre would have worked better if Seto had not been sitting calmly, unflappably, behind his desk sorting papers when Jou slammed the doors open.

"Wha' th hell, Kaib'?" Jou snapped with a scowl. These words seemed enough to sum up his grasp of the situation nicely, but Seto was nothing more than mildly amused by the way his accent thickened when he was angry. Jou slapped his palms flat onto Seto's desk when he suspected that the brunette was thinking of something ridiculous again, but Seto's only response was to look up and gesture to the leather couch at the far end of the oblong office. "Let's talk." He finally murmured and proceeded to lead, a still irate but now slightly directionless, Jou to the seat. Jou sat motionless, but eyed the brunette warily and from the farthest edge of the couch. It was just possible that Seto would do something unpredictable again and this time he was gonna be ready. They watched each other in silence until Jou saw as a small smile bloom and disappear as if Seto's knew exactly what was going through the blonde's mind. When he finally deigned to speak his words were some that Jou had never expected to hear out of his mouth. "This morning I had the thought that it would be extremely unappealing to continue living my life for someone who is just about an adult." Seto was looking directly at Jou and the intensity of his gaze surprised him. "Then I was faced with the question: What was it that I wanted?" He paused again to look briefly around the office that had been in disuse for 5 years. He looked back at Jou and this time he smiled slightly. "Well, in that moment I decided that it was you." Straight and to the point, Seto didn't seem to want to bother with drawn out explanations and Jou was left amazed at the way Seto had reached his conclusion. He managed to recover quickly enough to arch an eyebrow at the brunette. "An' of course ya think one little kiss will get ya what ya want, huh?" Seto looked momentarily surprised before a smirk bloomed on his face. "You expect me to, as the saying goes, 'woo you'?" Jou could hear the quotation marks in the air surrounding the words 'woo you' but he managed to keep a straight face and nod firmly. "If that's what ya think needs doing, but don't ya think it'll be easy just cause yer a little cute ya bastard." Seto nodded with unfeigned seriousness and slid closer to Jou on the couch.

"I will do my best."

He said and smiled a smile so soft that Jou's heart threatened to melt. Moments later Seto cupped his face gently and planted another close mouthed kiss directly on Jou's lips and Jou had to keep himself from giving in then and there. After the kiss ended Jou contemplated, just for a tiny moment, what it meant when Seto said that he'd give his best and when the thought ended he bumped his forehead against the brunette's and smiled. It was definitely something worth sticking around for.

_A/N: Fin! I do apologise if Seto's change of heart seems sudden, but I liked the thought that when he finally got to do what he wanted that something like that would be foremost in his mind. So, if you want a more lovey dovey chapter that's completely up to you guys to ask! Also, feel free to tell me how you would have done differently. Please do not tell me what I __**should**__ have done differently, because I actually liked this and it offends me when you tell me it's crap just cause it's not what you would have done. Anyway, thanks for reading! :)_


	6. Chapter 6

_A/N: Man! I'm sorry, university has been kickin' my li'l butt all over the map! So expect slow updates :3 and do enjoy this one. Even if it __**is**__so very silly._

Jou watched Seto's hands as they put down the expensive cutlery and ascend to his mouth to wipe delicately at it with his napkin. They were sitting in one of Domino's most exclusive restaurants – it was amazing what dropping the name Kaiba could accomplish – surrounded by glittering crystal and beautiful expensive artwork. Yet, Jou's eyes were again and again drawn to that mouth. He watched it, fascinated, as it formed words, opened to receive food, compress slightly to smile at him and Jou wished – he _wished_ – that they would just come closer and _kiss him_. And…shockingly…he found Seto leaning closer. The brunette suddenly had one hand on his and was closing in.

Jou sat motionlessly at first, but only until Seto was within inches of him, then he allowed his eyes to fall shut in anticipation. He wasn't disappointed. Seto took his mouth slowly, almost languidly. His left hand had risen from where it was lying flat on the table to cup the side of Jou's face and he was currently running his thumb in small circles on Jou's jaw, just below his ear. Jou melted into the ministration and allowed his mouth to fall open slightly so Seto's tongue could slip inside. It was as good as it had been the first time, only with less shock. He leaned closer, eager to receive more of Seto's attention, when suddenly the table was gone. Jou's eyes snapped open in confusion. He was sitting on Seto's lap. Comfortably, but kind of inexplicably. Suddenly the restaurant was gone too and they were in a bedroom – Seto's by the look of it – and Jou was beginning to understand what was going on…

His eyes snapped open in the semi darkness of early morning and Jou flopped his arms down on the bed once, in exasperation, before breathing out loudly. This was ridiculous. Here he was, a man in his mid twenties, dreaming about being _kissed_. Not about sex! Nooooo, there were no steaming hot orgies in his dreams. Only cutesy, _school girl_ kiss scenes. Jou sighed again and looked at his bedside alarm. He might as well get up and take a shower. It wasn't as if he realistically expected to fall asleep after that stupid dream.

The problem was not that Seto was not paying attention to him, he mused as he was removing his boxers and tank top. No, the problem was that there was in fact no kissing. There were plenty of dinners at fancy restaurants, but no kissing. There were quick coffee dates between meetings, but no kissing. There were even long, languorous strolls through the park. But no fucking _kissing!_ Jou thudded his head against the shower wall, cursed loudly and rubbed at the sore spot before grabbing the soap and washcloth and beginning to scrub.

There was no help, no help at all. The only logical conclusion was that Seto was indeed a robot who wanted nothing more than to trap them in a platonic, adult relationship until they died from the lack of intimacy!

He reigned in his irrational train of thought with difficulty. No, of course that was the case. Obviously, Seto was just afraid, but that was okay. It was _fine_, Jou would help him. He'd devote his _whole_ _day_ to helping Seto realise that there was nothing wrong with a simple kiss and, who knew, before long they could be kissing all the time and then, then his dreams would move on from first base! With his new resolution set Jou stepped out of the shower, dried off and went to face his destiny.

QQ

Jou placed the coffee on the table in front of the brunette and stood for a moment looking down at the preoccupied man. This was phase one: kiss on the cheek and now while Seto was reading the paper he had the perfect opportunity. Steeling himself, he swooped down ready to brush his lips against Seto's recently shaved cheek only to be met with air as Seto chose that exact moment to lean forward and pick up his coffee. Moments passed in slow motion as Jou had to frantically grab hold of the back of Seto's chair to prevent himself from diving head first into the other man's lap. Mortified, he jerked upright as soon as he could stand and, avoiding Seto's surprised, quizzical glance back at him, fled the room with a mumbled excuse.

When he'd caught his breath and gotten his colouring down to something that didn't look quite as much like ruby sunset, Jou had to wonder whether Seto had purposefully avoided him. But that couldn't be, right? He shook his head to clear it of the suspicion. Of course he wouldn't. It had been a silly embarrassing coincidence. The thing to do was move on from it and simply attempt phase one again. Later in the day. Jou swung his suit jacket around his shoulders, nodded to his image in the mirror and headed to the door.

QQ

Seto had luckily overlooked his lapse in normal behaviour and by the time they stepped into the limo on their way to work Jou himself could even manage to act as usual. During the ride they discussed the day's agenda and Jou relaxed further in the familiar work routine. He alerted Seto to meetings to be attended during the morning and keyed important tasks into his planner. Almost before he noticed they had arrived at the office and he was following the CEO inside. They took the executive elevator together and were standing shoulder to shoulder watching the panel above the door highlight higher and higher floor numbers in blue.

"I've reserved a lunch booking at Pierre's. Meet me in the lobby at 12h45."

Jou had been getting ready to step off when Seto spoke up and was standing slightly in front of the brunette. Before he could react to Seto's assumption that he would be able to make it the doors sounded. Knowing how snappy the lift could be, Jou sprinted out and turned back just in time to see a real smile briefly break through Seto's impassive work mask before his view was cut off.

QQ

"Hold my calls, I'm going to lunch with Mr. Kaiba." His secretary was obviously amused and Jou narrowed his eyes at her. "Ya laughing at me?" He asked and got a hand shake in return. "Of course not, Sir. Enjoy your meal." The woman said although her face was sporting that pinched look people get when they are trying not to smile. Jou refrained from glaring and swept past her. "Good," he muttered, his mind returning to phase one once again.

The restaurant was beautiful and its service good, but then he'd expected nothing else. Seto was good at choosing places to eat, kind of ironic for someone who had no interest in food other than for sustenance. He wasn't focussing on that now, though.

Jou had seated himself next to instead of opposite the brunette and was watching him discreetly between looking through the menu. Seto looked good, almost better than he had before the accident, but that was probably because being an adult suited him better than being a teenager had. His face was more angular and his hair closer cropped which served to highlight the sharpness of his gaze and surprising expressiveness of his mouth.

Mouth.

Jou watched, mesmerised, as Seto pursed his lips while reading his own menu. He stared as the man's tongue dipped out and wet the corner of his mouth. Jou swallowed, loudly, and tore his gaze away. Dammit, he wanted a kiss!

So he gathered his courage and leaned…

Seto turned his head away from Jou to signal the waiter and so wasn't quite aware of Jou's attempt until the Blonde's face thumped into the back of his head. He turned startled and stared at the cursing man. "What is wrong with you, today?" Seto was truly confused at Jou's behaviour. He was inexplicably clumsy.

Jou removed his hands from his face and glared at Seto. "I was trying to kiss you." He growled with irritation that wasn't helped along when Seto started chuckling. "Kiss me? That is what you tried to do this morning as well?" And of course Seto would be amused. Seeing the brunette grinning at him as if it was all just a joke was too much. "Yes, it was." Jou snapped shortly and kept his gaze straight ahead, thus missing the frown on Seto's face.

"Jounouchi…"

"Don't Jounouchi me!"

Jou tossed the menu, still held loosely in his hands, onto the table. He felt irrationally angry, why only he obsessing about this! "Why the hell is everything always such a mission with you?" He muttered before shoving his chair away from the table. "I'm heading back to the office. I'll see you tonight." Still avoiding eye contact Jou turned towards the exit leaving a very perturbed brunette sitting alone and looking after him.

Once back at the office Jou's day did not improve. He hadn't been busy with the reports piling up in his 'in'-tray for 30 minutes before his secretary alerted him to a systems failure in the production department on the 10th floor. Luckily Seto was in a meeting during the emergency so Jou could deal with one disaster at a time. Especially since his mind was still circling what had happened at lunch like a buzzard. He didn't want to face Seto, not until he'd gotten his thoughts in order anyway, which wasn't likely to happen while he was busying dealing with everyone else's fuck ups at work.

It was after 7pm when he finally managed to drag himself away from the company and tossed his tired body into the back of the limo. Seto's secretary had informed him that the CEO had left earlier and that was peachy too. He'd known the man for long enough to know that Seto would do whatever he wanted anyway. Yet, the more he dwelled on it the sadder it made him. Seto should have waited for him. Didn't he care about what had happened this afternoon? Jou swallowed with difficulty. And now he was acting like a woman!

Shit.

His rational mind told him that he was just tired and half of the current attitude stemmed from that, but it made no difference. He _wanted _to wallow in self pity and so he would. Rationality could go to hell.

The apartment's lights were dimmed when Jou finally stepped inside and shed his jacket and briefcase. He didn't feel like cooking and hoped Mokuba would be out with friends. There was no way he was cooking for that brunette prick alone. He flopped down on the couch lifelessly and stared at the ceiling while doing his best to not think about anything.

It worked until a hand holding a glass full of pale bubbling liquid entered his line of sight. Blinking once, he shifted his gaze lethargically upwards to see Seto's face looking down at him. "It's a peace offering." Seto told him finally when he made no move to take the glass. He moved around the back of the couch and set the tall, thin stemmed glass on the table. "I thought about attempting dinner, but wisely decided to honour my own limitations. Besides, it would probably in no way endear me to you if I managed to destroy your kitchen." While speaking he'd taken a seat on the edge of an armchair to the right side of the couch that Jou was occupying and was watching him with an earnest expression. When it seemed that Seto wasn't simply going to go away Jou gave in, sat up warily and took the glass from the table to take a sip.

It was Dom Perignon.

Seto was definitely trying to fix _something_. "I did get takeout." Seto spoke up again, "Sushi." He added with a small smile and if he was getting nervous about Jou's silence he wasn't showing any outward sign of it.

"I felt humiliated."

He said it mainly to see how Seto would react and watched as the brunette's face morphed into a frown. "I understand that now, but Jounouchi," Seto paused for a few seconds to search Jou's face before continuing. "Why didn't you just say you wanted me to kiss you?" Jou stared at Seto, then peered down into the glass. Then fidgeted with it awkwardly some more. "I was afraid of overstepping the boundaries." He finally muttered into the lip of the glass.

"Pardon?"

"Boundaries, Seto! I was afraid of overstepping them!"

Seto stared at him in amazement and then gave a quiet laugh. "Would you believe me if I say that I was as well?" Seto had a rueful, almost sheepish expression on his face as he admitted it. The brunette shifted from his seat and settled next to Jou. "I realised early on that I know almost nothing about you and thus I tried to spend time with you to figure out what kind of behaviour would be acceptable to you. Except, when not speaking about work or Mokie, you've been…distracted." Seto smiled at him again. The action was really nothing more than a twitch of his lips. "I guess I now know why."

Jou had to admit he felt better. Even if a little communication could have solved everything earlier. At least he know knew Seto hadn't been holding back because he found Jou undesirable. "Still, you could have just asked me." Jou murmured. The taller man nodded his head. "And in the future I will speak to you, I promise."

"I suppose I should too." Jou said with a slight grimace and sidelong glance at the other man who rolled his eyes at the tone of Jou's statement. Then a thought occurred which made Jou perk up. "You say ya ordered sushi?" Seto nodded in affirmation.

"Ya think it'll keep?"

"We can reorder if it doesn't." Seto said with a quizzical expression, "But why don't we just eat now?" "Well," Jou tossed back his drink before smiling sexily at his boyfriend. "I want a kiss."

_A/N: Thanks for reading!_


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